Reports: Rep. Howard ‘Buck’ McKeon will not seek reelection

Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, a powerful defense hawk in Congress whose district once stretched from the Inland Empire to northern Los Angeles County, will announce that he will retire after more than two decades in office, according to published reports.

The 75-year-old Republican plans to announce his plans on Thursday in a news conference, according to multiple reports, including the Associated Press.

McKeon spokeswoman Alissa McCurley said Wednesday afternoon that she could not confirm the reports.

“The congressman will make an announcement when he is ready to make the announcement,” she said.

A news release went out Wednesday afternoon from the House Committee on Armed Services — which he chairs — confirming McKeon will make a statement from Washington, D.C., early today.

Republican officials spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, according to the AP report, because they weren’t authorized to publicly discuss McKeon’s plans ahead of a formal announcement.

McKeon has served in the House of Representatives for 21 years and has been the chairman of the House Committee on Armed Services since 2011.

A former Santa Clarita councilman and William S. Hart Union High School District school board member, McKeon was first elected to serve California’s 25th Congressional District in 1993. His district once included the third-largest population in California — 845,000 — and was the second-largest district by area in the state, encompassing areas of Mono, Inyo, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, according McKeon’s website.

But in 2012, the political lines were redrawn and today the district includes parts of Ventura and northern Los Angeles County — including Simi Valley, Porter Ranch, Santa Clarita, Palmdale and Lancaster.

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The soft-spoken McKeon campaigned for Republican candidates in 2010 and, thanks to the GOP wave that year, took over the chairmanship of the committee that oversees military policy, war operations and authorizes budgets for the Pentagon. During his time in charge, McKeon has fought congressional efforts to slash spending as defense hawks were increasingly outnumbered, even in the Republican Party.

The departure of the politically powerful McKeon will be felt both locally and nationally, according to David M. Speak, a professor of political science at Cal Poly Pomona.

“A senior member is better situated than a neophyte to ‘bring home the bacon,’ whether that means a new bridge or the more skillful representation of the district’s policy preferences,” Speak said.

And Congress will be diminished by the loss of the 11-term congressman, he said, “as institutional memory (wisdom) and long-established working relationships (process) are lost.”

Fifteen House members — nine Republicans and six Democrats — have announced plans to leave Congress after their terms end. McKeon’s Armed Services counterpart in the Senate, Democrat Carl Levin of Michigan, also plans to retire after this year.

Lee Rogers, a Sherman Oaks physician and resident of Simi Valley, immediately sent out a statement affirming his interest in the seat.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

About the Author

Beau covers education and politics for The Sun and the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Reach the author at Beau.Yarbrough@langnews.com
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